[FreshToku]

I feel confident in saying this episode's climatic fight, with the frozen raindrops surrounding Kabuto and the worm, is one of, if not the most iconic scenes in Kabuto. I certainly still remember it vividly now, since the first time I watched it years ago!

Maybe this is just me thinking about what comes after in the show, but I do think the big emotional beats between Tendou and Kagami are most ideal happening early on like this. We got those first few weeks getting a rough idea of how this dynamic works, one being the super smug, super competent hero, and the other the more naive 'sidekick'. That dynamic probably isn't going anywhere quite yet, but this episode drives home that there is and will be more to it than that, I think.

Glad to see Kabuto's had the chance to rock your socks off this early on! I want to just say that while I'm not super attached to insect motifs despite knowing their importance to the franchise as a whole... I think Kabuto is maybe the definitive modern Kamen Rider design. He's cool, sleek, and probably simple enough for a child to draw and still be identifiable. Also I probably say this about a lot of songs, but Full Force, the insert that first played in episode 2, is one of my favourite songs in the whole franchise.